BEIJING — You stay out of our politics, we stay out of your politics: this is the message Belgian Prime Minister Alexander de Croo delivered to Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Friday.
In a statement to the press ahead of his meeting with President Xi Jinping’s No. 2, Decroo appeared to be mindful of the Chinese influence-seeking scandal that has rocked Belgium, calling for Beijing to intervene in European politics. I told them not to do it. In the last few weeks.
“I have had the opportunity to discuss a number of topics between our two countries, including our positions on human rights, respect for each other’s political systems, and our positions on 100 percent respect and respect without it. “I hope that it will be ‘interference’,” Decroo said in English.
The cash-for-influence case involves Frank Kleijelman, a member of the far-right Belgian party Vlaams Beran, who is accused of receiving funds from Chinese spies for the purpose of influencing Belgian and European politics. has been done. De Croo, who took over as rotating president of the EU Council for six months earlier this month, is in Beijing for a two-day state visit, where he is expected to meet with Xi.
In late December, the Belgian prime minister told Belgian media that during his visit he would convey his concerns about China’s interference in EU politics, saying that Beijing had at times adopted a “very hostile attitude.”
The visit came at a unique geopolitical time, the day before Taiwan’s closely watched presidential election, but relations between the EU and China are hit by several hurdles, including European companies’ access to the Chinese market. I’m running into it.
“We have a really big goal, and that is to strengthen a more balanced economic relationship and discuss how we can gain better access to the Chinese market,” Decroo said. Told.